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Snow Patches On Scottish Mountains


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  • 2 weeks later...
Posted
  • Location: Evesham/ Tewkesbury
  • Weather Preferences: Enjoy the weather, you can't take it with you 😎
  • Location: Evesham/ Tewkesbury

Thanks for sharing PM. Those pics are astonishing! Looks like those snow patches may well survive and become glaciers by next winter!Posted Image Posted Image Posted Image Posted Image Posted Image Posted Image

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Posted
  • Location: Motherwell, Lanarkshire
  • Location: Motherwell, Lanarkshire

Still plenty of snow patches around in Glencoe yesterday, even after the recent heatwave.

Those photos aren't Glencoe though! That's the much gentler and more rounded terrain of Carn Ban Mor above Glen Feshie, on the western edge of the high Cairngorm plateaux. Will have gathered a lot of snow on south-easterly blizzards earlier in the year. Edited by spindrift1980
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Posted
  • Location: Derbyshire Peak District South Pennines Middleton & Smerrill Tops 305m (1001ft) asl.
  • Location: Derbyshire Peak District South Pennines Middleton & Smerrill Tops 305m (1001ft) asl.

Those photos aren't Glencoe though! That's the much gentler and more rounded terrain of Carn Ban Mor above Glen Feshie, on the western edge of the high Cairngorm plateaux. Will have gathered a lot of snow on south-easterly blizzards earlier in the year.

 

Correct my mistake ! All shot's were taken in Ciste Mhearad on Carn Ban More Posted Image

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Posted
  • Location: NH7256
  • Weather Preferences: where's my vote?
  • Location: NH7256

Correct my mistake ! All shot's were taken in Ciste Mhearad on Carn Ban More Posted Image

 

I was up near there in the middle of May and the snow seems to have melted much less than I would have expected given the heat over the summer... but then sometimes the greatest snow loss is due to strong winds and heavy rain so perhaps not so unexpected eh? Pass, too much Posted Image tonight to think straight! 

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Posted
  • Location: Derbyshire Peak District South Pennines Middleton & Smerrill Tops 305m (1001ft) asl.
  • Location: Derbyshire Peak District South Pennines Middleton & Smerrill Tops 305m (1001ft) asl.

Thanks for the first class knowledge on this subject Firefly, A growing interest of mine !

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Posted
  • Location: Derbyshire Peak District South Pennines Middleton & Smerrill Tops 305m (1001ft) asl.
  • Location: Derbyshire Peak District South Pennines Middleton & Smerrill Tops 305m (1001ft) asl.

Firefly, Have you any idea how this year is rating in terms of remaining snow patches ?

Edited by Polar Maritime
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Firefly, Have you any idea how this year is rating in terms of remaining snow patches ?

Prior to the heat-wave I'd have said pretty good. The Carn Ban Mor patch would almost certainly have survived (it may still, though looking unlikely), as would one or two others that don't normally. The hot weather decimated the snow somewhat.

 

I'd say it looks pretty average to be honest. It's likely that a few will survive, though nothing's certain. If I were a betting man I'd say 5 patches. We shall see!

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Posted
  • Location: Leeds/Bradford border, 185 metres above sea level, around 600 feet
  • Location: Leeds/Bradford border, 185 metres above sea level, around 600 feet

How much snow fell in the Highlands during March.

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Posted
  • Location: Highland Scotland
  • Location: Highland Scotland

This is the Cairngorm Access Road at the edge of Glenmore Forest just above the Sugar Bowl hairpin at 1500ft on 25th March:

Posted Image

Edited by skifreak
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Posted
  • Location: Purley, Surrey - 246 Ft ASL
  • Weather Preferences: January 1987 / July 2006
  • Location: Purley, Surrey - 246 Ft ASL

This is the Cairngorm Access Road at the edge of Glenmore Forest just above the Sugar Bowl hairpin at 1500ft on 25th March:

Posted Image

 

A slight flurry there then! :)

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Obviously it will vary year to year, but when usually is the peak snow cover and when is the low cover over the Scottish Mountians. 

 

 

From looking at Alps webcams, they can have heavy snow in Sept, but normally it seems that only in November does the base start to form (on higher slopes) , is this the case for Scotland as well.

Edited by J10
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Posted
  • Location: Motherwell, Lanarkshire
  • Location: Motherwell, Lanarkshire

Obviously it will vary year to year, but when usually is the peak snow cover and when is the low cover over the Scottish Mountians.   From looking at Alps webcams, they can have heavy snow in Sept, but normally it seems that only in November does the base start to form (on higher slopes) , is this the case for Scotland as well.

The pattern of snow accumulation in Scotland is, unsurprisingly, given difference in altitude and proximity to the sea, quite different to the Alps. Even the highest of Scottish mountains are typically subject to numerous freeze-thaw cycles during the period from late autumn to late spring. Equally, weeks at a time of freezing conditions or weeks of thaw are possible, so there really is no definitive pattern. At the longest lasting snow sites - usually gullies, corries or natural hollows - enormous drifts build up in winter and even the mildest spell of weather won't fully diminish the build-up until the following summer or autumn (hence this thread!) but on more open slopes most of the general snow cover can melt at times during mild spells in winter. The downhill ski-centres in Scotland are therefore located in areas prone to drifting on the prevailing winds, and where the topography has good snow-holding capability, as the more general cover typical in the Alps can't be relied upon.I believe it is probably typical for the greatest depth at the long-lasting snow sites to be reached some time around April, but sometimes not until May in cold springs. However, the arrival of lasting drifted-in snow at these same sites is usually some time in mid to late October (sometimes as early as September) in the more central quasi-continental climate of the Cairngorms but slightly later on average in the more maritime climate of the high western hills such as Ben Nevis. In any area, it can be November before this occurs or, very occasionally, early December if the colder weather is late in arriving. Edited by spindrift1980
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Posted
  • Location: Derbyshire Peak District South Pennines Middleton & Smerrill Tops 305m (1001ft) asl.
  • Location: Derbyshire Peak District South Pennines Middleton & Smerrill Tops 305m (1001ft) asl.
Snow survey - 20.08.2013

 

A visit to the snows of the Nevis range over the course of two August days (18th on Ben Nevis and 20th on Aonach Mor).
Present was Blair Fyffe, Tony Stone, and Mark Stephens from the BBC.

 

Want to see more pic's check out this Saturdays Out of Doors program on BBC Scotland...

 

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/28183399@N03/sets/72157635160477192/

Edited by Polar Maritime
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Posted
  • Location: Rotherham
  • Weather Preferences: Snow Frost Sun
  • Location: Rotherham

 

Snow survey - 20.08.2013

 

A visit to the snows of the Nevis range over the course of two August days (18th on Ben Nevis and 20th on Aonach Mor).

Present was Blair Fyffe, Tony Stone, and Mark Stephens from the BBC.

 

Want to see more pic's check out this Saturdays Out of Doors program on BBC Scotland...

 

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/28183399@N03/sets/72157635160477192/

 

 

 

Looking at depth of some of that Snow I´d say there´s a good chance it will last through to next winter.

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Posted
  • Location: Fort William
  • Location: Fort William

Hello there,

I don't normally post much on here, but have enjoyed the interesting discussions on Netweather for quite a few years now. I see that the pictures from the two days I had looking at snow last week have already appeared on this thread. Therefore I thought it might be worth posting that I have written a little about those days, and links to a few other snow related discussions, here on my blog http://blairfyffe.blogspot.co.uk/   I hope that it is okay to link to this, I thought that some of you might find it quite interesting. 

Keep up the good work in regards to all the interesting threads on this site.

Thanks Balir

 

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  • 3 weeks later...
Posted
  • Location: Motherwell, Lanarkshire
  • Location: Motherwell, Lanarkshire

Thought I would bump this thread with a belated update:

So, thanks to intrepid volunteers such as Blair above, we know that the number of snow patches remaining in Scotland as at 20 August was the highest since this survey was initiated in 2008, the figures being:

2008 - 34 patches

2009 - 35

2010 - 34

2011 - 36

2012 - 72

2013 - 81

30 of the 81 were to be found in Ben Nevis and the surrounding 4000-footers in Lochaber, with 49 in the Cairngorms, 1 on Lochnagar and 1 on Creag Meagaidh, in the central Highlands.

A fair number of these will have gone since 20th August though, as many of the patches are now becoming small and vulnerable to sun, wind and rain. More details can be found at the link below.

http://www.winterhighland.info/forum/read.php?2,154638

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  • 2 weeks later...
Posted
  • Location: Derbyshire Peak District South Pennines Middleton & Smerrill Tops 305m (1001ft) asl.
  • Location: Derbyshire Peak District South Pennines Middleton & Smerrill Tops 305m (1001ft) asl.

Looking up towards the east cliffs on Aonach Beag. Snow patch at 900m in a' Chul Choire and one of 5 now left, this probably being the largest depending on measurements of the Observatory gully patch visited by Blair Fyffe yesterday

 

 

post-12319-0-47262800-1380490899_thumb.j

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Polar Maritime, where did you get that photo?! That was taken by Al Todd and features... me! I was up there with Al on Sunday and am looking forward to seeing his pictures!

 

Anyway... Over the course of the weekend I visited most of the extant snow patches in Scotland. As mentioned by PM above, Blair Fyffe visited Ben Nevis and found a few patches. All told there were (at the time of the visits) 7 patches in Scotland. The biggest of which is the one linked to above, on Aonach Beag (situated, amazingly, at around 3000ft, here). A good picture of the depth of this snow can be found in my picture, here. The patch measured 50.7 metres long on Sunday and is a certainty for survival to winter.

 

Aonach Mor, the mountain beside Aonach Beag (both part of the Nevis range of mountains) also held a tiny remnant, seen here, for those of you with good eyesight!

 

Garbh Choire Mor, Braeriach, had two patches left. The so-called Sphinx and Pinnacles patches were both present and correct.

Posted Image

 

The patch of snow in the middle (Sphinx) is the most durable in the UK. It has melted just 6 times since the 1700s at least (1933, 1953, 1959, 1996, 2003, 2006). I suspect that, although only 8 metres across at its widest, it will last until the new snows of winter. The lower patch (Pinnacles) was 21 metres long at the time the photo was taken.

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Posted
  • Location: Derbyshire Peak District South Pennines Middleton & Smerrill Tops 305m (1001ft) asl.
  • Location: Derbyshire Peak District South Pennines Middleton & Smerrill Tops 305m (1001ft) asl.

Hi firefly ! This picture was taken off facebook, i think the winterhighland page? I will look into it when im back from work. Nice to see you in the picture ! Thanks for the detailed update as usual.

Have you tried clicking on the link to the photo ? Now i remember that is where it's from.

Edited by Polar Maritime
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Posted
  • Location: Darlington
  • Weather Preferences: Warm dry summers
  • Location: Darlington

The top of Glencoe (3,600ft) is covered in fog today but from what viability is available it looks rather Green so it looks like the snow which fell in September has melted quit quickly

 

Posted Image

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Posted
  • Location: Derbyshire Peak District South Pennines Middleton & Smerrill Tops 305m (1001ft) asl.
  • Location: Derbyshire Peak District South Pennines Middleton & Smerrill Tops 305m (1001ft) asl.

Thats just the top of the ski lift SS, but yes the sprinkling we had in September would of only lasted a day or two max.

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